Bismarck’s I-94 Exit 161 Construction You Should Know About

Exit 161 off of I-94 in Bismarck is one of the most congested areas in the city.

The North Dakota Department of Transportation and city officials hope to do something about that.  Major reconstruction has begun on the interchange and it's going to last for a while.

Exit 161 is the very first exit coming into Bismarck from the east on I-94.  I remember not that long ago when there were only about 3 things off of that exit.  On the north side, a Cenex gas station and a mobile home park, and on the south side the Stamart Travel Center and Marlins.

My, how things change.  Now Centennial Road which begins just north of the exit is booming with businesses and numerous new developments have popped up as the city of Bismarck has been growing in that direction for years.

Here's what you can expect from this road construction project.

This exit will be like none other that we have in Bismarck.  The interchange reconstruction project is designed to support growth in the Centennial Road/Bismarck Expressway area.

It's hoped that the interchange will not close during the construction process.  This will be a modified single-point urban interchange designed to efficiently move large volumes of traffic by converging traffic under one set of traffic signals.

Here's a North Dakota Department of Transportation video explaining how this futuristic exit will work.

What's the cost and when is this reconstruction project expected to be completed?

The estimated project cost is between $40 and $50 million dollars.  Completion of the Exit 161 reconstruction project is expected by the summer of 2026.  Yep, this is not a quick fix so you can expect delays in the meantime.